Motorized Screen/cover

I'm interested in fabricating a motorized screen or a motorized screen cover. I don't want to use the single din flip out screens, because I want to install the screen in a double din opening (the car is an '03 Audi A4)

The reasoning behind this is that I'd like to install a computer, but I need something discreet that can be concealed easily. The area I work in is pretty rough, and if I just leave anything out in the open, it'll be gone.

I guess what I'm looking for is any kind of drawings, ideas, or anything that would help me come up with some ideas to design this. I've been sketching some drawings the past few days..but I have designers block hahaha. Hopefully someone on here can help me get started.

first thing you said you wanted is a motor. do you have that picked out yet? however you plan on doing the actual moving is a good place to start. once you have that you can check out www.sdp-si.com for small nylon gears, worms, and racks you're likely to need.

Does it NEED to be motorized? if not, you can get a stock hu from a junker or audi, etc. and recess the screen. When you park in a sketchy area, just put the front piece of the stock unit in place, when you get back in, just toss it in the glove box. It's like a removable faceplate but in reverse.

I designed something before that was linear actuation based, it was three sides: screen, stock looking head unit face, and the third was the back to mount to the actuator. When the computer turned off, the screen auto-flipped downward (actuator pushed opposite corner upwards) and the fake faceplate would show.

For that design to work, the actuator would have to be set up with the correct limits, and mounted to just the right point on the back of the set up. I think I had a sketch somewhere, but here's what I was kinda going for (sorry it's done in paint since I'm not at home.) It'd be a lot of measuring and testing, etc.

IMO it'd be way better to just recess the screen and use the fake faceplate...

that diagram was exactly what I was looking for. While it doesn't have to be motorized, I'm up for the challenge and am in no rush to finish the project. I haven't even bought anything yet...still in the planning stages haha.

I did consider the idea of recessing the screen and just throwing in a faux faceplate, but I think that's more of a cheesy solution.

I hope to buy the screen soon, now that I have some kind of direction.

I really want to find that schematic I had, it was actually for a small flip out screen for a pda screen I was going to try and use. It could be scaled up though. (still haven't found a way to interface this screen with my PC btw.)

As cool as it might be and all, it's way more complicated. As occam's razor implies: "All things being equal, the simplest solution tends to be the right one" so the simple solution of a fixed screen with the faux faceplate would tend to be the right answer. (less issues with failing actuators or electronics, and the cables aren't moving, etc...)

I'm thinking the other reason she might not want the PC is the start-up shut-down sequence. I think she'd just get annoyed with having to wait that extra few seconds to listen to music. I've shown her some of the other installs on here, and none of them have really caught her eye yet.